Music
Started getting into a holiday mood by listening to last year’s Indie Christmas mix from alexrainbirdMusic (they’ve recently released a winter 2019 mix, hopefully, there will be another Christmas one) and when it came time to start unpacking Christmas decorations I pulled out the Leroy Anderson (Real Gone has a new two-disc set out on CD, but there’s also a great single album best of from 2004 - “A Leroy Anderson Christmas” that was the perfect soundtrack.)
And as I write this I’m listening to the (episode 91) Holiday Special of St. Vincent’s Mixtape Delivery Service from last year.
Movies and TV
Christmas in Louisiana (2019)
Pedestrian, but sweet, - professional woman returns to small hometown and rekindles romance - thing made bearable by a solid made to order comfort viewing cast and decent framing subplot. In fact, the film could have been just as good, or better, without the main Jana Kramer plot taking center stage..
Watched as part of a double feature with Christmas in Mississippi, which shares a couple of the same cast members, including lead Kramer.
From the director of? Nanny Seduction
Guest stars? Moira Kelly, Dee Wallace, Barry Bostwick
Decent effort from Lifetime, it feels as christmassy as a flick filmed down south during the dog days of summer is ever likely to.
Christmas in Mississippi (2017)
Less engaging than this year’s Christmas in Louisiana, I lost interest midway through.
From the director of? Christmas in Louisiana
Guest stars? Faith Ford, Richard Karn , Barry Bostwick
Write Before Christmas (2019)
Some decent twists on familiar cliches and some sub-genre blending. There’s a lot going on and while it doesn’t feel super organic things eventually come together reasonably satisfyingly. Most of the cast is great and the script is pretty good.
Is it Hallmark? Yes
Does it look like Christmas? Sure
Does it sound like Christmas? I guess
Does it feel like Christmas? Sure
Did I finish it? Yep
Is it a good movie? It’s okay.
Is it a good Christmas Movie? Absolutely (for a Hallmark)
Daddy’s Home 2 (2017)
I don’t know if I enjoyed this dopey comedy so much because it’s pretty good or because it’s “The Shop Around the Corner” compared to what I’d spent the rest of the day watching.
It’s not going to join Christmas Vacation, Scrooged and so on as an annual must-watch holiday guffaw-fest but I’ll probably watch it again at some point. Something I can’t say about ”Bad Mom’s Christmas”.
The Outer Limits - The Conversion (1995)
Frank Whaley, John Savage and Rebecca De Mornay star in this episode from the first season of the Outer Limits’ nineties reboot. Set at Christmastime, with a fair amount of holiday decor, and a message of redemption. Sort of a It’s a Wonderful Life deal. Not something I’d return to as a holiday staple, but if you’re looking for a bit of sci-fi this season check it out.
